Southwest
Lost 18th-century Spanish mission unearthed after decades of searching offers ‘rare snapshot’
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Archaeologists and students recently uncovered an 18th-century Catholic mission in Texas — a discovery that clarifies a key chapter in the early history of the Lone Star State.
Excavators from Texas Tech University (TTU) unearthed remains belonging to Mission Nuestra Señora del Espíritu Santo (Mission Our Lady of the Holy Spirit), an abandoned settlement in Jackson County.
With the help of students, excavators discovered proof of the missing site, which resolves “decades of searching” and “fill[s] a long-standing gap in the historical record of early Texas,” the university said in a recent release.
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Pictures show excavators and archaeologists-in-training smiling at the site, located in southeastern Texas.
Excavation leader Tamra Walter, an associate professor of archaeology at TTU, told Fox News Digital this week that her team found numerous artifacts during the dig.
Researchers and students from Texas Tech University uncovered remains of an 18th-century Spanish Catholic mission. (Tamra Walter/Texas Tech University)
“We found lead shot and sprue, sourced to the mines in Boca de Leones in Nuevo Leon, Mexico, rose head nails — indicative of this time period — [and] parts of a copper kettle, including a handle,” she noted.
Her team also found pottery, plus fired clay and daub from the mud huts of the time — as well as brass trade rings, a part of a pair of scissors and “a number of as-yet unidentified objects.”
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The mission was related to Presidio La Bahía, a Spanish fort, and Fort St. Louis, a colony established by French explorer René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle.
La Salle’s settlement, which failed, prompted Spain to reassert control over the region. The Spanish crown promptly launched expeditions, and Mission Espíritu Santo was part of Spain’s effort to “pay serious attention to Texas for the first time,” said Walter.
Artifacts recovered from the mission site include lead shot, rose head nails, pottery fragments and parts of a copper kettle. (Tamra Walter/Texas Tech University)
The religious settlement was only occupied from 1721 to 1725. The professor said that one of the main reasons for its early demise was difficulty in attracting Karankawa Native Americans to the mission.
“They relied heavily on the labor of Native converts, and without them, they didn’t have the manpower to establish and maintain crops and livestock to keep the operation going,” she said.
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“The local environment was also challenging. It was hot, the area was full of mosquitoes and there were alligators living in the nearby creek.”
The weather combined with difficulty surviving in mud huts led the missionaries to move westward to Goliad, Texas, to set up a new site.
The discovery was made with the help of students, giving them hands-on experience with centuries-old artifacts. (Tamra Walter/Texas Tech University)
What makes the mission’s remains so special is their rarity. Mission Espíritu Santo was “one of the earliest definitively located Spanish missions in Texas,” Walter said.
She added that the excavation “helps to provide a rare, undisturbed snapshot of daily life on the Spanish frontier in the early 18th century.”
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“Without La Salle’s colony, this mission and presidio likely would not have existed, and the events that unfolded here helped change the course of Texas history,” she said.
Walter added that her students were “very excited” to be part of the search for the mission.
The excavation “helps to provide a rare, undisturbed snapshot of daily life on the Spanish frontier in the early 18th century,” said the excavation leader. (Tamra Walter/Texas Tech University)
“They also had the opportunity to work with professional archaeologists from the Texas Historical Commission and even a team of researchers from New Mexico,” she added.
“I think it is also pretty exciting for them to touch the same artifacts used by the mission occupants more than 300 years ago.”
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Little India spans just five blocks along Pioneer Boulevard in Artesia, but its sights and sounds can make visitors feel transported to South Asia without leaving Southern California. The vibrant enclave is filled with family-owned restaurants, bustling markets, jewelry shops, and colorful clothing stores that offer an authentic cultural experience.
For Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, KTLA’s Angeli Kakade explored the community and the pride residents take in preserving their South Asian roots. One of them is Arjana Vig, owner of Mancha Designs, a bridal and fusionwear boutique inspired by her journey from New Delhi to Southern California in the 1990s.
Los Angeles, Ca
Ex-employee charged with stealing $1 million in model car collectibles from SoCal factory
A former MGA Entertainment employee was charged with stealing over $1 million in diecast model car collectibles from the company’s factory in the San Fernando Valley, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced Tuesday.
The DA says that on Feb. 14, at approximately 4:30 p.m., 55-year-old Simi Valley resident Luis Tanahara allegedly stole CarTuned collectibles valued at approximately $500,000 from a shipping container at the factory in Chatsworth and loaded the items in his personal vehicle.
He was reportedly employed as a senior product designer for the company at the time.
Then, on March 4, investigators seized over $1 million in CarTuned collectibles from his residence.
The cars are highly valued by hobbyists and collectors, especially when sold in surprise “Master Packs.”
The case was filed for warrant on April 7, and Tanahara was arrested and pleaded not guilty during an arraignment on April 10. He was released on his own recognizance and ordered to stay away from MGA Entertainment, the DA said.
A preliminary hearing is set for May 27 at the Foltz Criminal Justice Center.
Tanahara is being charged with one felony count of grand theft and one felony count of receiving stolen property with special allegations that he stole property valued at over $1 million. If convicted, he faces up to six years in state prison.
“My prosecutors do not come to play: If you steal collectible toy cars or any cargo from our ports, you will be fully prosecuted,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman said. “Diecast cars are not everyday toys or merchandise with a set retail value, they are prized collectibles with a potentially infinite value to a collector, representing a tremendous loss for the victim. My office will continue to fight for our local businesses and hold retail thieves accountable.”
Investigations are underway into a pair of fires that started about 15 minutes apart, burning two separate residences and leaving one person injured in Los Angeles’ Koreatown neighborhood overnight.
Firefighters were first called to the 3000 block of San Marino Street, where fire was showing from a three-story fourplex at 12:08 a.m., according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.
Citizen video obtained by KTLA showed the massive flames stretching into the downtown Los Angeles skyline as emergency crews responded.
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Firefighters responded to a blaze on San Marino Street in Koreatown on May 26, 2026. (Citizen)
About 75 firefighters were sent to the scene and extinguished the blaze in a little over half an hour. No injuries were reported.
Sixteen minutes after the San Marino Street fire began, another fire was reported less than two miles away at a four-story apartment building on the 200 block of South Westmoreland Avenue at 12:24 a.m.
Approximately 45 firefighters were assigned to that blaze, which was knocked down after about 45 minutes, according to the Fire Department.
One patient was located suffering from an unknown medical condition. No further details about the patient were provided.
There was no immediate word on what may have caused either fire or whether the two incidents were connected.
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